No grey areas: All Blacks legend checks out rare white thoroughbred

New Zealand rugby legend Sir Colin Meads meets the High Chaparral – The Opera House filly.

It was a case of All Black meeting “all white” ahead of New Zealand’s Premier Yearling Sale later this month, as rugby legend Sir Colin Meads was dazzled by a unique youngster at Windsor Park Stud.

The successful racehorse owner took a shine to the Cambridge farm’s white filly when inspecting yearlings this week with Albert Bosma’s Go Racing Syndication team.

The daughter of High Chaparral is out of The Opera House, a three-quarter sister to the two-time Australian Horse of the Year Might And Power (Zabeel), winner of the Melbourne and Caulfield Cups and the Cox Plate. She was born in September 2014.

The Opera House made headlines when she was born at Cambridge Stud in 2006 as one of only few registered white thoroughbreds in the world.

She went on to be the first white thoroughbred filly sold at auction in Australia when she was bought by entrepreneur John Singleton for $A280,000 as yearling in 2008.

Singleton ran a promotion offering racing shares in the filly and she duly performed on the racetrack, winning one and placing in five of nine starts before being retired to stud after sustaining a leg injury.

The Opera House was bought by Windsor Park Stud after being offered at the Magic Millions Gold Coast sales in 2013. She had two foals in Australia and was bred to Shamexpress after foaling the High Chaparral filly, producing a white colt on November 6.

The High Chaparral filly will be sold at New Zealand Bloodstock’s Premier Yearling Sale on January 25.

Sir Colin was a part-owner of the Go Racing-managed Ruud Awakening (Bernardini), whose five wins included the 2013 Karaka Million and he has a genuine chance of doubling his tally in New Zealand’s richest race on Sunday week with the Stephen McKeeprepared Tennessee (NZ) (Per Incanto).

Sir Colin races the Per Incanto filly with the trainer’s father Trevor, Thayne Green and Pinehaven Racing. She was a debut winner at Ruakaka in September before she added the Listed Wellesley Stakes at Trentham to her record the following month. She finished fourth last time out after missing the start in the Gr.3 Eclipse Stakes.

Tennessee, whose half-brother by He’s Remarkable (Lot 721) will be sold by Mapperley Stud during the Select Sale at Karaka on January 27, is currently a $14 chance for the Karaka Million.